My Testimony

I accepted Christ when I was eight.  I was baptized by Dale Rogers at Bethel Baptist Church in Anadarko, Oklahoma.  This is the church I grew up in until graduating College and moving to Norman.  I found an apartment in Norman and commuted to Oklahoma City to work.  I started visiting Bethel Baptist Church in Norman simply because it was the same name as the church I grew up in.  I was attending their College and Career class.  This is where I met my wife Jennifer.

It was the summer of 1995.  Before the morning service started one Sunday, I overheard Jennifer saying something about wanting to make it to one of the services at Falls Creek the coming week. It was the week that the youth group was going from the church.  I grew up going to Falls Creek and my former youth director was taking his church this same week so I was planning on trying to go a night or two after work.  I told Jennifer I was planning on going and she was welcome to ride with me.  It turned out we went Wednesday night and Friday night. I believe it was on the Friday night we got back that I asked her if she would go out with me.

Jennifer was everything I had been praying for, for the last few years.  She accepted Christ when she was eight and we seemed to have most of the same beliefs.  We got married on June 21, 1996.  We were expecting our first child the following year.  We were going to have a boy.  Little did we know that Jennifer was a carrier of Group-B Strep.  Harmless to the mother but fatal to a baby if not treated properly during delivery.  Jennifer's doctor didn't seem concerned.  We also later discovered that Jennifer would not have physically been able to deliver naturally because of the shape of her pelvis.  Jennifer never went into labor so at 40 weeks she was induced and nothing happened.  The baby was perfectly healthy and normal at this point.  She was sent home and told to come back the following week to induce again.  Still nothing.  At this point we were really concerned but her doctor told her not to worry. We asked about a c-section but the doctor still wasn't worried and assured us everything was okay.

The doctor had to manually break her water.  It was at that point she could tell the baby was already having bowel movements.  Several hours later, Jennifer started running a fever from the strep infection.  27 hours later the baby crashed.  By this time it was too late.  He had suffocated.  Jennifer had an emergency c-section.  She was being cut open even before they even had her under.  The NICU worked on him for 58 minutes but they were not able to save him.  We were going to name him Tanner Lakota.  Our perfectly healthy son was fine just one week before and would be alive today if different actions had been taken. We filed a Medical Negligence lawsuit and some 6 years later it was finally settled outside of court.  You put all of your trust in a doctor because they are supposed to be the experts but we have learned over the years you have to be your own doctor.

This was devastating. We chose to get him ready ourselves for the funeral. We got him all dressed and ready.  I don't know how people can go through tragedies like this that don't know the Lord.  It's pretty difficult even when you do know Him.  His presence is with us always even during unconscionable events like these.  I was able to rest on the fact that God was in control and had a plan for everything.  You can choose to either go crazy or put your faith in Him.

Life went on.  You have no other choice but to pick up the pieces and go on.  We started trying to have a another baby a few months later.  It didn't take too long.  Jennifer got pregnant and we were expecting another boy.  Things were different this time.  We weren't naive doctor trusting people anymore.  We were very well educated now on all things related to Group-B strep.  We found an excellent Ob-Gyn this time.  We told him how things were going to work this time.  We were going to have a planned c-section at 38 weeks and Jennifer would be started on antibiotics the day before.  He agreed one hundred percent.  38 weeks later our second son Tyler was born.  We also gave him his big brother's middle name, "Lakota."  Everything went perfect.  It was also difficult though because Tanner's death was easily preventable.  But we didn't know any better because we trusted our doctor.  But we also wouldn't have had Tyler either.  You see, God has a plan.  We don't always know what it is but we have faith that He will take care of everything.

In June of 2001 we had our third child, Serenity.  Again by c-section at 38 weeks.  Very uneventful as far as there being any complications.  We were very happy.  Everything was going well.  In February of 2002 we discovered that Tyler had been diagnosed with Leukemia.  He had been very tired and complaining about his legs hurting.  We finally took him to the ER and that's when blood tests revealed the cancer.  Jennifer had suspected it was Leukemia but our pediatrician thought she was nuts.  She never doubted Jennifer again after that because she had completely missed all the warning signs herself.  Here again, it just goes to prove that you have to be your own doctor.  I will say this a million times, you don't have to have 8 years of schooling and MD behind your name to know a little bit about medicine.  Jennifer can go toe to toe with any oncologist when it comes to Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia, which is what Tyler had.  You have to be your own advocate.

Tyler went into remission within a week.  He endured a lot however.  He underwent three years of chemotherapy. Overall, he had to have twenty-one spinal taps, seven bone marrow aspirations, two surgeries, hundreds of port accesses, hundreds of blood draws, Red Blood Cell transfusions, Platelet transfusions and eleven hospitalizations. His treatment consisted of drugs such as oral, IV and intrathecal Methotrexate, Vincristine, Daunorubicin, Cyclophosphamide, 6-Mercaptopurine, Ara-C, Leucovorin, Prednisone, Dexamethasone, L-Asparaginase, Peg Asparaginase, Ketamine, Propofol and Atropine. He lost most of his hair, swelled up like a balloon from the steroids, endured pain, battled nausea and had to remain isolated for three years because of a severely compromised immune system. Long story short, Tyler was robbed of a large part of his childhood.

Several years later, we discovered that our daughter had severe dyslexia.  We home school both our kids and Jennifer had been racking her brain trying to figure out why Serenity was having trouble reading.  We finally attended a Susan Barton presentation and it soon become clear.  If we had known several years earlier that she was dyslexic we could have modified her curriculum.  The biggest problem was that our lovely state didn't offer testing for home schooled children.  But that's a different story.  Anyway, Jennifer has since been using the right tools to help Serenity deal with her dyslexia.  She is coming along with her reading.

I also forgot to mention we were in the May 3rd, 1999 tornado that tore through Oklahoma.  All these events have shaped who we are.  God has been with us through every one of them.  You are never alone.  Have peace and rest in knowing that God is in control.  I leave you with some versus that might help you with your walk.

But Jesus beheld them, and said to them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.  Matthew 19:26.

"These things I have spoken to you, that in me you might have peace. In the world you shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."  John 16:33.

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.  Isaiah 41:10.

"For where two or three come together in my name, there am I with them."  Matthew 18:20.